New York State Announces New Partnership to Bring More Locally Grown Christmas Trees to the New York City Marketplace

Fresh Direct Partners with Upstate Farm to Sell New York Grown Christmas Trees in New York City

Encourages New York Residents to Purchase a Local Tree this Holiday Season

New York State today announced Fresh Direct, a leading fresh food internet grocer that delivers to residences and offices in the New York City metropolitan area, has added farm-fresh, New York grown Christmas trees to its lineup of products available for sale to its customers. Empire State Development and the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets have been working to promote the use of locally grown Christmas trees across the state, and helped facilitate this new partnership to bring greater exposure to and increase the purchase of New York trees in the New York City marketplace.

Empire State Development President, CEO & Commissioner Howard Zemsky said, “The efforts of New York State and its partners to promote locally grown Christmas trees in the New York City region will have a significant impact, creating jobs across the state and brightening thousands of homes for the holidays.”

State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball said, “New York is one of the largest producers of locally grown Christmas trees anywhere in the country and the quality of a farm-fresh tree is second to none. Through this partnership, we are helping our farmers reach new potential in the largest marketplace in the world. I applaud Fresh Direct for making ‘New York’ an option to its customers and encourage all New Yorkers to support our growing Christmas tree industry by purchasing a local tree this holiday season.”

Fresh Direct is sourcing locally grown, live potted trees from Dutch Church Farm in Amsterdam, New York. The farm is making Fraser firs available for delivery throughout New York City, and so far has made two deliveries of a large number of trees downstate. The ‘Berries and Bows’ trees are two-foot Fraser firs that come pre-decorated with colorful berries and festive bows. They are available online now at www.freshdirect.com.

Jason Ackerman, Co-Founder and CEO of FreshDirect, said, “FreshDirect is proud to offer these locally grown trees this holiday season. We are committed to growing and expanding our relationships with local purveyors and growers throughout New York State.”

Ned Chapman, owner of Dutch Church Farm LLC, said, “I am very grateful for the opportunity that Fresh Direct has provided to introduce this new product to the marketplace. We are both hoping that the Berries and Bows tree will fill a demand that hasn’t been addressed in the past. I am also very proud to have the New York logo on the care tag. This shows the New York City consumer that we are trying to bridge that gap between the downstate resident and the upstate farmer.”

The collaboration with Fresh Direct builds on efforts made last year by the State and the Christmas Tree Farmers Association to work with existing vendors to sell even more New York-grown Christmas trees in the New York City market for the holiday season.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, New York State ranks fourth in the country in the number of Christmas tree farms at 875. There are nearly 19,000 acres of Christmas trees planted in New York State, and approximately 19 million trees being grown today.

In addition to the economic impact, locally grown Christmas trees also have the benefit of holding their needles longer and having a fresh scent well into the holiday season and beyond. There are over a dozen Christmas tree species grown in New York, including the Concolor Fir, Fraser Fir, Douglas Fir, Balsam Fir, Nordmann Fir, Turkish Fir, Blue Spruce and White Pine.

FreshDirect is a leading online fresh food grocer in the U.S., delivering premium quality fresh-from-the-farm foods and brand-name groceries directly to the doors of customers in the greater New York, New Jersey, Connecticut metro areas and greater Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area, including Delaware. With unique relationships with suppliers and farmers around the world, FreshDirect focuses on providing customers with the best-tasting, freshest, top quality foods and meals. Additionally, FreshDirect's research, development and production facility creates and innovates the more than one thousand unique meals and baked goods produced in house daily by a team of chefs. FreshDirect aspires to be a valued corporate partner in all communities in which it serves, and works extensively with multiple charitable and community partners. For more information, visit www.freshdirect.com. Follow FreshDirect on Twitter: @freshdirect, Facebook: facebook.com/FreshDirect, and Instagram.